Hi Love!

Lately, I have been absolutely loving leg day. I've been enjoying pushing HARD and lifting as heavy as I can to really make my quads and hammies pop. 

I'm so excited to bring you this workout because it includes a lot of my all time favorite legs and glutes exercises. This workout is super versatile. You can perform these lifts with dumbbells or a kettlebell and it can be done at the gym or at home. 

Tips for Growing the Legs & Glutes

1. Slow down that negative, girl! 

This goes for all workouts. I see so many gym goers just dropping the weight versus controlling the entire lift. What do I mean by this? Take a squat, for example. You'll see people very quickly lower into the squat.

However, in order to maximize the effectiveness of this lower body lift, they should be feeling the burn on the way down (the negative portion of the lift) just as much as on the way up! Slow down the descent into the squat. You should be decelerating and fighting against gravity on the way down. 

Fun fact: your muscles gain the most strength in the eccentric movement (the part of the lift during which you're moving in the same direction as gravity.) 

2. Focus on mind muscle connection

Most people have weak, under active glute muscles. This makes it hard for them to activate the glutes properly during a booty workout. If this is you, I recommend starting with a lighter weight and really focusing on feeling the glutes contract.

Squeeze them hard at the top of each movement. The more you focus on the muscle you are actually intending to activate, the better you will be able to recruit said muscle.

If the weight you're using is too heavy for you, you might instead feel the quads or hamstrings doing most of the work on a booty lift like, say, the hip thrust. This is because your body wants to take the path of least resistance to complete the movement you're asking it to perform.

If the muscle you want to activate is too weak to handle the weight you're using, your body will recruit the stronger synergist muscles (muscles that can assist during the movement) to do most of the work. 

So moral of the story is: lift heavy enough to challenge the muscle you intend to work. But do not lift so heavy that you are sacrificing form and/or recruiting other muscles to do the majority of the heavy lifting. 

The Workout

1. Goblet Squat (Slow negatives - 3 seconds) 4x10
2. Sumo Squat 4x12
3. Stiff Leg Deadlift superset with Curtsy Lunges (Complete all reps on one side before switching sides) 4x10
4. Reverse Lunges (Complete all reps on one side before switching sides) 4x12
5. Step Up 4x12
6. B Stance Hip Thrust 4x12 superset with Pulsing Hip Thrusts Until Failure

Exercise Instructions

Goblet Squat

1. Start by holding a kettlebell in front of your chest between two hands. Your feet should be shoulder width apart. 
2. Sit back and descend into a squat, putting your body weight into your heels. Make sure to keep your chest up through the whole movement. The descent should be slow (about 3 seconds.) This is called a slow negative.
3. Drive through your heels to come back up to the starting position. The push back up to the starting position should be faster (about 1 second.) 
4. Repeat.

Sumo Squat

1. Start by holding a kettlebell in front of your chest between two hands. Your feet should be pointing outward at about 45 degrees and should be wider than shoulder width apart. 
2. Sit back and descend into a squat, putting your body weight into your heels. Make sure to keep your chest up and your knees in line with your toes through the whole movement. 
3. Drive through your heels to come back up to the starting position.
4. Repeat.

Stiff Leg Deadlift

1. Hold a kettlebell at arms length between both hands in front of you. 
2. Keep your lower back straight and your knees locked as you bend at the waist.
3. Lower down to the floor, maintaining your flat back and slight bend at the knees. 
4. Then straighten up while still holding the kettlebell at arms length in front of you. 
5. Repeat.

Curtsy Lunge

1. Stand tall with a braced core and flat back. Hold a kettlebell in front of your chest between both hands. Position your feet to be at hip-width.
2. Beginning with the right foot, step backward and across your left foot. Simultaneously, bend the left knee and drop it towards the ground.
3. Stop when the front right knee is parallel with the ground. Push off the ground with your right foot and return to the starting position.
4. Repeat the movement with the same leg for all prescribed reps before switching to the other leg.

Reverse Lunge

1. Hold a kettlebell between both hands in front of you. 
2. Bring one leg back behind you and bend the front leg to lower your body towards the floor. 
3. Once the knee of your back leg is nearly touching the floor, push back up and return to the starting position. 
4. Keep your chest up for the entire movement. 
5. Complete all prescribed reps with one leg before switching to the other leg.

Step Up

1. You can perform this exercise with a bench, couch, chair, or step. It just needs to be a sturdy elevated surface. Hold a kettlebell between two hands in front of you. 
2. Place the right foot on the elevated surface while keeping the left foot on the ground. 
3. Keep your knee in line with your foot as you push yourself up onto the platform. Lift your left foot all the way up while keeping your knee slightly bent.
4. Lower the left foot back down, bending the right knee as you do so.
5. Complete all prescribed reps with one leg before switching to the other leg.

B Stance Hip Thrust

1. Sit on a padded surface with your legs out in front of you and the knees bent. Make sure your back is against a secured bench, couch, or chair. Lay a kettlebell across the right side of your lap.
2. Bring your left foot out past the right foot so that your left heel lines up with the toes of your right foot. Flex the left foot so that the toes come off the ground.
3. Focusing the tension in the glutes, raise your hips skyward, moving the kettlebell up with you.
4. Pause when you feel the contraction in your glutes then slowly lower yourself to the starting position.

Pulsing Hip Thrusts

1. Sit on a padded surface with your legs out in front of you and your knees bent. Make sure your back is against a secured bench, couch, or chair. Lay a kettlebell across your lap.
2. Focusing the tension in the glutes, raise your hips skyward, moving the kettlebell up with you.
3. Pause when you feel the contraction in your glutes then slowly lower yourself about halfway down and then right back up to perform a pulse rep. 
4. Continue these pulse reps until you are unable to perform any more reps with good form. Then lower yourself back down to the starting position.

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✔ You want to look and feel strong physically and mentally
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✔ Wonder Woman is goals in your mind
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